PORT ST. LUCIE — David Wright and Daniel Murphy both had bats in their hands and said they were getting closer to being ready for Opening Day.
Terry Collins, though, has been around the Mets long enough to know not to plan too far ahead.
So when he was asked whether Murphy could be penciled into the No. 2 hole in the order, the manager stopped short.
“That’s way out there,” Collins said after the Mets lost to the Tigers, 9-4, in a split-squad game yesterday at Tradition Field. “I haven’t gone that far. I don’t have him in the lineup yet. I don’t have the faintest idea. I’ve got some other positions I don’t know who’s going to be there yet.”
Right now, that’s half of his infield, but at least there were some positive signs.
Yesterday, Wright took live batting practice for the first time since an intercostal injury sidelined him during the World Baseball Classic, and Murphy, also plagued by a sore intercostal, played in his first minor league game.
“It’s one day closer and I continue to progress, so that is a good thing,” Wright said of his recovery. “For a couple of different reasons, kind of mentally it’s somewhat of a hurdle to get over, not knowing how you are going to feel when you swing.”
He reported no problems.
“It was kind of normal,” Wright said of his BP session. “I don’t go out and try to hit a lot of homers in BP anyways, so it felt good.”
But he’s still not completely healed.
“It’s something, obviously, when you are talking about inflammation, it’s about trying to knock it out,” Wright said. “It’s gotten much better … You’ve got to know the difference between when you’re hurt or just kind of banged up.”
And he was encouraged just to be hitting on the field.
“The cage is different,” Wright said. “You hit off a tee. It’s a controlled environment. On the field, it’s a little more effort.”
And he admitted he needed to be reminded to take things slowly, as he added, “I can be my own worst enemy.
“They’ve kind of done a nice job of putting the reins on me and making me take my time and slowing me down.”
As for Opening Day, he said he was “just as optimistic as I was … a week ago.”
His next step will be playing in a minor league game. While a game today would be unlikely, he knows it has to happen soon if is going to make April 1.
“It’s going to be important to play in some games at some point and we only have a week left, so you can do the math,” Wright said.
Murphy has been slowed by injuries throughout the spring and pointed out he hasn’t taken an actual at-bat since October.
He went 1-for-2 despite the ball looking like “an aspirin” and also was pleased that when he checked his swing during his second plate appearance, he didn’t feel any discomfort. His plan is to get as many minor league at-bats as possible to correct his timing.
Collins said Murphy could be playing by Opening Day, but his primary concern is keeping his two recovering infielders healthy throughout the season.
“The worst-case scenario is they miss the first six days,” Collins said. “That’s not bad for us. We’ll take that. One thing we can’t have is that they miss the first six weeks. That’s what we can’t have.”